POL 449: POLITICS OF CULTURAL CONFLICTS

FALL 2003: Tuesdays, 6:00PM to 8:30PM

Instructor: Martin Carrier
Email: mcarrier@email.arizona.edu
Phone: n/a
Office: 304
Office Hours: Thursdays, 11:00AM to 2:00PM

Course Objectives

The general objective of this course is to provide students with a theoretical overview of multiple forms of nationalism as well as introduce specific case studies in which cultural conflicts have been important. Special attention will be given to conflicts of ethnic and linguistic nature.

Theoretical perspectives presented include, among others, nationalism as a response to uneven economic development, nationalism and alienation, nationalism as an affirmation of primordial identities, nationalism as the instrument of the elites, nationalism and globalization, and a discussion of the end of nationalism. Such an overview will help students interpret cultural conflicts through multiple lenses and help them to think theoretically about political science issues.

Structured in a comparative perspective, the course will focus on cases studies of Canada, Belgium, Basque country/France/Spain, Russia, Brazil and Rwanda . The goal is to provide a wide portrait of different forms and levels of cultural conflict, as well as an overview of means of conflict managements. The US example will serve as a point of comparison through the semester.

The use of technologies in class will offer students multiple tools for their understanding of nationalism, including the use of maps, censuses, photography, films and other media in the cultural consolidation of the nation. The objective is to transcend a simple theoretical overview of nationalism and help students to understand the specific cultural dynamics of selected nations.